When You Die

"When You Die"
Single by MGMT
from the album Little Dark Age
Released	December 12, 2017
Recorded	2017
Genre	Psychedelic pop neo-psychedelia gothic rock hypnagogic pop
Length	4:23
Label	Columbia
Composers	Andrew VanWyngarden Ben Goldwasser Ariel Pink
Lyricists	VanWyngarden Pink
Producers	MGMT Patrick Wimberly Dave Fridmann
MGMT singles chronology
"Little Dark Age" (2017) "When You Die" (2017) "Hand It Over" (2018)

"When You Die" is a song by American pop and rock band MGMT, and the second single from the band's fourth studio album Little Dark Age . It was released worldwide on December 12, 2017, through Columbia Records.

Recording

The song was recorded in 2017. It was co-written by Ariel Pink, who also plays guitar on the song. ^[1]

Artwork

The Heart of Man; Either a Temple of God, or a Habitation of Satan; Represented in Ten Emblematical Figures, p.38

The song's artwork is based on an illustration in The Heart of Man; Either a Temple of God, or a Habitation of Satan; Represented in Ten Emblematical Figures, an 1851 book by German religious figure Johannes Evangelista Gossner.

Music video

The music video was directed by Mike Burakoff and Hallie Cooper-Novack, and was released on December 12, 2017 through The New Yorker along with the audio release. The video stars Alex Karpovsky and Lucy Kaminsky, with Karpovsky playing a failing magician that appears to die and watch his death through a psychedelic trip presumably in purgatory. ^[3]

The video has been viewed 33 million times through the band's official Vevo account on YouTube. ^[4]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Andrew VanWyngarden and Ariel Pink; all music is composed by VanWyngarden, Ben Goldwasser and Pink.

Digital download and stream

No.	Title	Length
1.	"When You Die"	4:23

Personnel

MGMT

• Andrew VanWyngarden – vocals, guitar, percussion, producer
• Ben Goldwasser – synthesizer, vocals, flute, producer

Additional Personnel

• Ariel Pink – guitar, background vocals
• Patrick Wimberly – percussion, production, engineering
• Dave Fridmann – production, engineering, mixing
• Connan Mockasin – background vocals
• Sébastien Tellier – background vocals

Charts

Chart (2017)	Peak position
US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs ( Billboard ) [5]	35

References

1. MGMT – When You Die. Genius. Retrieved March 9, 2018.
2. "The heart of man : Either a temple of God, or a habitation of Satan : Represented in ten emblematical figures, calculated to awaken and promote a Christian disposition". 1851.
3. Gordon, Arielle (12 December 2017). "MGMT – "When You Die"". SPIN.
4. MGMT – When You Die. YouTube. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
5. "MGMT Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard . Retrieved March 7, 2018.